


The Mirror of Thorns

by fadedredscarf



Category: Fire Emblem: If | Fire Emblem: Fates
Genre: Angst, Demonic Possession, Flashbacks, Graphic Description, Horror, Implied/Referenced Cheating, Killing, Light Angst, Murder, Mystery, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Psychological Horror, Suspense, Violence, slighty SLIGHTLY OOC
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-05-06
Updated: 2017-06-24
Packaged: 2018-10-28 18:29:48
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,055
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10836927
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fadedredscarf/pseuds/fadedredscarf
Summary: With writer's block enveloping a struggling Leo, Takumi gives him an idea for the two of them to stay in a hotel that's rumored to be haunted. Hoping his ideas start pouring out, Leo eventually agrees to Takumi's suggestion to stay in the hotel. All there needs to be done was to complete Leo's manuscript, but strange occurrences starts to happen within the hotel, affecting both Leo and Takumi.Will Leo and Takumi manage to stay strong-willed throughout their stay?(A mystery/horror AU of Leo and Takumi, based off a novel I read. I don't know if I can consider this as LeoKumi, but hey. Another thing to note that some of the chapters may contain some spoilers in the main game, mainly on Conquest and Revelations.)





	1. "Welcome..."

**Author's Note:**

> hello! i've been struggling to find some fresh new ideas to write about and i stumbled upon a horror novel. it greatly reminded me of these two dumb nerds. dw, i didnt go to a haunted hotel. 
> 
> this story's gonna have a big focus on leo and takumi, and two other characters that i'll add, if i think that they suit to be a part in the story. 
> 
> the mute voices will be put on hold. i'll probably post some other one-shots i make here. 
> 
> please leave kudos/comments! it will be greatly appreciated! and also, please point out some grammar mistakes if they're there haha, i kinda feel a lil rusty about my writing
> 
> enjoy!

The resonating tick of the wallclock surrounds the room, showing an empty _1:03 am_ , and a heavy, brazen sigh follows. The surface of both his left index and middle fingers alternately tapped on the plastic table, with his right hand resting on his right cheek- seemingly waiting for the fingers to put ideas into his head, like a faulty connective wire pouring data into a piece of software. Not wanting to lose all of that patience, he then pushed himself away from the table, letting the computer chair roll him away from the monitor. Then, his cloudy brown eyes locked itself to his long haired friend, sitting down on a twin sized bed at the opposite of his computer table, who was gleaming his eyes on his phone screen.

"I’m never going to submit this in time, Takumi…” spoke out from his dried lips, as he buried his face to his hands. Takumi raised his head from the phone, and a surprised brow.

“What a rare occasion,” he smiled sinisterly, and with a sarcastic tone, “you’ve never acted this way before over a deadline, Leo. Look at me. I’m keeping it steady. Just relax.” After the comment, Takumi continued facing his phone screen.

Another big sigh came out from Leo, this time sounding a lot more tiring than before. It was true; never had he ever complained on a deadline, due to how helpful his brain was in giving him amazing ideas, but this was different. This was Leo’s first time trying out on a horror novel. To add his frustrations up, how could _he_ joke around on a writer’s block on a serious manuscript? But all could he do was just sigh on Takumi’s cynicalness.

“Shut it, you. This doesn’t mean I’m giving up just yet. And it isn’t fair, you were only given a flimsy assignment.” The blonde haired boy immediately pulled himself back to his table. Hoarse _vrrrrs_ from the computer chair expressed his frustration over his incomplete manuscript. Leo couldn’t comprehend his numbing head and rubbed his temples to reassure his composure, but the blinding monitor (even though the lights were complimenting the brightness in their small room) finally made him feel defeated.

“Hey, you know, you could just try and stop yourself whenever you get a writer’s block, man. A nice breather is probably what you need; forcing yourself would only get you nowhere.”

Leo paused his fingers and stifled a snicker from his throat. _Am I going to get lectured from a man who doesn’t follow his own advice?_ But although that was the case, it’s true. Forcing himself would get nowhere. Maybe he did need to get a breather.

“Are you even listening?”

All his friend was doing was silencing himself.

“Yeah, yeah, I did.”

Takumi understood the pressure and pain on writing, especially the obstacle of a writer’s block- he himself never liked it, and had threw lame fits over it, so telling his friend to calm down was a little ironic. But Leo is still his friend, and he does not want to see him in that state. So maybe, those articles and little ideas he just read _will_ make him take a breather... Only his consent and validation would put all of this into motion.

“Let’s stay in a haunted hotel.” That sudden, out of the blue sentence immediately rose the tension and Leo turned himself to Takumi, staring at his smug expression with a completely blank one.

 _A haunted hotel? What and where the hell did Takumi find this time again?_ Leo’s heart started to feel uneasy.

“...For what, though?”

“What do you mean, _for what though?_ For those ideas to come pouring through, of course,” Takumi replied, with a cheer.

Silence resided after the uneasiness, and Leo is silent. His friend’s offer was too out of place and sudden, but it had a flair to him that made his thoughts desire to accept, towards all those stale ideas tormenting his brain. Yet at the same time, he didn’t give a straightforward answer and needed some more time to think about it. The offer was too sudden. Too immediate. Too out of place.

“Come on, man. You don’t need to think hard,” the long haired man replied, as if wanting Leo to just accept it and move on.

Leo turned his head away from his friend and looked at the computer monitor again. His manuscript was far from nearly being finished, with all of the chapters being incomplete. How will he finish this in time with the deadline coming to catch him?

“...Where is this hotel located?” Leo asked, finally interested.

“Just around our little area.” Takumi cracked out a wide (almost a little sinister) smile. Finally, he was able to persuade his friend. He edged his body to the front, wanting to tell and show his friend more about the details because actually, he had already done his research while Leo was struggling.

Leo approached closer to Takumi while raising his left brow, interest gradually getting deeper.

“Do you already know how the hotel looks like?”

Takumi immediately nods.

“When are we going?”

“Well, aren’t we free this Thursday and Friday? What if we go there this Thursday?”

“And, until when?”

“Sunday. We’ll be at the hotel within 4 days. You can finish your manuscript until then,” explained Takumi.

Four days was enough for Leo to finish his manuscript. And he was confident that the hotel would give him billions of ideas to write about. But…

“Is the hotel really haunted?” Now, he was really into his friend’s idea.

Takumi shrugged.

“I’m not really sure whether or not it’s true that the hotel’s haunted, but based on from the sources I’ve read, they say that it is haunted.

Leo was silent but his heart was thrashing about to know about the hotel more. He needed to see this whole thing by himself (together with Takumi, of course) and besides, it’s confirmed that the ideas would start pouring out from his head with an exotic inspiration like a haunted hotel. He was sure that it would befit for the last few parts of his manuscript. A good chance like this shouldn’t be missed too easily.

“What’s the name of this hotel?”

Takumi reacted with all of his questions with smiles. He reached out for his phone and handed it over to Leo.

“Just read it on your own.” Saying too much felt useless, so he’ll let the words from the sources he got tell by itself so that he can make his own judgements.

_‘ Speculorum Hotel ‘_

Leo read the story word by word attentively that was written on the blog shown on the phone screen. The entry was written by the writer who had experience staying in the hotel.

_‘ The sound of knocking was always there every night, and it truly made me paranoid. I told myself to be brave to open the door…But what awaited me outside was the empty silence that felt suffocating...’_

Takumi observed Leo’s reactions. His eyebrows wrinkled, mouth agaped. Similar to his own reaction when he read the entry the first time. The experience that was written really gave him goosebumps, as if the readers reading the entry were actually experiencing themselves. The way the writer wrote was realistic and trembled hearts.

_‘ I’ve seen a person- no, spirit, just taking form of a person, on floor 3 who never smiles to the guests staying there. When giving him a second glance, he disappears into thin air, making you think that he’s nothing but a mere fabrication that your brain made. The appearance of this… ‘person’, looks as plain as a simple bell-boy. ‘_

Leo looked at Takumi, who was still having a mischievous smile plastered on his face. After that, Leo continued reading.

_‘ ...from what I’ve heard, this spirit used to be a worker here as a bell-boy a few years back, who was a victim of a tragic murder scene. ‘_

Leo bit his lips and stopped reading, and goosebumps were scattering all and about throughout his body. But nonetheless, the interest overcame his fear. He needed to go there. He must go there. The excitement was ringing and beating strongly inside of his heart. The long haired friend then nudged his head to Leo, signaling him to read further.

And the adrenaline rush within him increased.

There was a photo attached in the entry, with a description: ‘The victim tried to escape from the bathroom, but he was unfortunate. He was stabbed to death. Sources say that after he was stabbed for too many times, he was dragged and stabbed again on top of the bed.’  
_Why am I suddenly feeling a little uneasy now?_ The short haired man thought to himself. The photo showed an aftermath of the murder. Dull iron of crimson blood stained the bed sheets and the carpet. He wanted to say something, say _anything,_ to stop himself from feeling frozen.

When Takumi saw some slight redness from the picture in the blog that reflected Leo’s eyes, he knew that he reached at _that_ point.

“...Kinda sucks that he had to feel all… that pain,” he spoke out to his shocked friend.

Finally getting some composure of his voice thanks to his friend, Leo asked, “What’s the case of all the murder?”

“Jealousy.” The cynical faded off, and eventually he started to wear a bitter smile.

Leo heaved in and let go a heavy sigh, putting the phone away. Jealousy was getting more and more apparent to some murder cases. A simple misleading from one, and the other would react hostile, and the hostility would grow into hate, grow into violence…

“Did the victim had a scandal with his wife or what…?”

“Dunno much. I’m not quite sure, but from other stuff that I read, it kinda feels like the wife didn’t have much for it. Even the victim…”  
  
“Maybe the victim wasn’t guilty…?”

“Who knows?”

“Has the killer been arrested?” It would be too confusing to Leo if they weren’t arrested.

“Probably.” Takumi responded, trying to keep it all short.

Even though both of them felt a little mortified as they went through the blog post, the excitement within them couldn’t go away, especially on Leo.

 

What will await them on the days that will follow?


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ACK im sorry for the late update!! ive been busy with irl stuff :( my writing skills also feel rusty so there might be a ton of grammatical errors.
> 
> please leave kudos/feedback and enjoy! the next chapter is probably gonna take a little while, but hopefully shorter than the wait for this chapter

“We’re here now!” said Takumi. Leo looked at the white building in front of him, and proceeded to move forward towards the entrance, examining the surroundings while he was at it. The hotel tried its best to look modern because some old-fashioned elements still remained on its design.

“Come, let’s go!”

Leo looked at his friend who was already ahead of him, with the clothing bag slung on his shoulders. Yet his eyes were still captivated by the color of the building, but soon enough his friend was signalling him to come in together to the lobby.

As the two of them entered the main lobby, Leo suddenly felt a wave of weirdness. It was probably due to the blog post he read yesterday. The tragic murder that happened in the hotel he was currently in bothered his mind; it was too surreal and odd for him to take in. Leo then started to feel an odd presence that looked (or spied) at him at his left side, adjacent to a concrete wall. His forehead started to sweat.

Who would be looking at him at full interest at this time? Who, or what was it that was hidden behind that concrete wall?

Takumi’s voice snapped him back to reality. He pointed and showed the key of their room that was already in the grasp of his hand after registering at the lobby. Leo then looked back at the spot where he felt like he was being watched, but for some reason, it was no longer there. Stretching his neck so that he could confirm his suspicions, he wanted to be sure that the ‘man’ that was watching him was actually gone. It was definitely obvious that he was there, and he himself was definitely,  _ definitely not _ seeing things!

“C’mon, Leo, let’s go,” called Takumi. The train of Leo’s thoughts was now switched off. With a heavy prayer within him, he stepped into the room thinking about what mysteries the hotel will unfold. Takumi opened the curtains that closed the balcony in the room, and the light outside started to cover and lighten the depressing room. He then let the bag of his clothes scramble on the floor.

If Takumi could be brutally honest, the rooms that he and Leo permanently shared together appeared to be a lot more appealing, even though it was bland to him back in their apartment. At least the hotel room looked a little similar to that small room Leo called cozy -  two twin sized beds were separated by a small, yet thick ivory table. A flat screen TV (surprisingly, because he expected  _ some  _ antiques to stray around the room) that stood in front of the beds. Adjacent to their beds looked like a black working table that had a decorative plant on its left side. The only differences were that the area of the room was a lot more bigger, the setting (which felt awfully melancholic due to the rusty-looking walls and pale colored floor), and a huge balcony that they didn’t have in their apartment. 

Meanwhile, Leo was still stuck at the entrance of the room, and a thought struck inside of his mind. He immediately went to look at what room they were staying in. The carved ‘301’ on the front door was now carved inside of his brain as well. In which room did the tragedy happen a few years ago, he wonder?

 

_ ‘The disgusting event was said to take place on one of the rooms on the third floor.’ _

 

Leo’s eyes widened in shock, now trying to find which room the blog entry was talking about. The room became the main witness of the terrifying horror of one human upon another. 

“What are you doing out there, man? Come on in,” called Takumi, when he noticed and saw his friend was still outside of the room. 

Leo changed his view to look at Takumi, and then he entered in. He then went to the balcony to clear his mind while taking his friend’s bag along the way. The wind outside that caressed his cheeks at least helped a little bit, but there was some other things that still bothered his train of thought. He took a glance behind to see Takumi, who was currently busy reading some things in his phone. There was something he needed to say.

“...Which room do you think the murder took place in?” asked Leo. The question he asked wasn’t replied immediately, as the long haired friend started to be deep in thought.

“Third floor, right?” Takumi asked, trying to remember back. Leo nodded.

“In the blog post, it doesn’t seem like the author wrote what room number it took place,” replied Takumi.

Takumi’s answer crushed Leo. He didn’t know why he was struggling and thrashing to look at the room. Even if he saw the physical appearance of any of the room’s characteristic, like the door of the room, he’d be more than satisfied.

“You don’t have to worry about that. Just focus on the manuscript,” he continued. The real reason why they came to the hotel wasn’t to investigate what happened, but it was to ail Leo’s damned writer’s block. There was still the deadline that managed to be a lot scarier than the hotel. 

Leo was speechless. He distanced himself from the balcony and started unpacking some items from his bag. The disgruntled writer approached his side of the bed and took out a slim laptop. He tried to find  _ any  _ ideas to write about, though only his dumbfoundedness seem to be the most apparent when the laptop was switched on. It seemed like the writer’s block was still haunting his box of imaginations. At the end, he switched the laptop off in slow frustration. 

“You wanna eat somewhere? I’m kinda hungry.” Takumi playfully touched his stomach and coincidentally, Leo’s stomach started rumbling, too. Leo then started to realize that he hadn’t ate anything at the day.

* * *

 

The two hungry authors headed off to the hotel’s restaurant. The decor of the eatery didn’t surprise either of them as they see victorian-like decor complement the place; old chandeliers, bland golden ornate wallpaper, mediterranean pillars - it really gave off quite a haunting look to the customers, but at this point why would they even be surprised anymore?

An old fashioned waiter ushered them to their table and immediately asked for their orders. Leo ordered beef stew while Takumi ordered something similar, which was a simple miso soup. The waiter then bowed and left them alone. Leo requested to the chefs if they could add some tomato flavor to his stew.

As they waited for their orders, their time seemed to be filled by stories of the hotel heard from other patrons sitting around the restaurant, like the people sitting next to them who were a group of people sharing stories of experiences that were from other people who had the same purpose as them.

“Hey, what do you think could happen to us tonight? I remember a friend of mine didn’t stay overnight for long. 9 pm and he immediately ran out.”

“My husband’s friend told me about the spirit of the bellboy that  _ everyone  _ seems to be talking about. It is a little scary hearing it at that time, I have to admit,” a woman with curly hair spoke out. 

“Oooh, what did they see?” Another one of them spoke out.

“The spirit of the bellboy on the third floor. When she was trying to find her room, she met the bellboy and asked him directions, but she was met with a very  _ inhumane _ expression... after that, she felt a sensation that the bellboy  _ phased  _ through her. When she looked for him again, it looked like she never encountered the bellboy at all. In some midnights that she slept in, she would hear knocks on the door that was completely out of place,” the curly-haired woman replied.

The other friends who just listened nodded. The disruption taking place in the hotel wasn’t just an occurrence anymore. Other patrons that stayed in the hotel mostly consisted of urban adventurers who wanted to experience the paranormal. The hotel was also surrounded with thick trees that gave a dreadful impression to others.

Leo wanted to say something to Takumi about their conversation, but the waiter finally arrived with their orders. The long-haired friend was satisfied about its arrival. However Leo stared at his soup with no appetite. 

Takumi smirked about Leo’s curiosity and took the stainless steel spoon that was placed aside his bowl and tapped the table a few more times, deliberately wanting to catch his friend’s attention.

“Hey, you should eat. You’re so focused on the little ghost stories, you’ve barely talked today. Don’t blame me or whine if you start to feel a lot more hungry later, heh.” 

The worried friend changed his attention from the stories to Takumi’s words and stared at his stew.

“At least the food here is actually great. Not as archaic as you think,” convinced Takumi.

Although Leo finally started to eat, his attention changed directions again when the curly-haired woman began to speak loudly, bothering the other patrons who were present.

“I guess the locals here are just cowards who don’t want to stay here. I wonder why this hotel still gets business...” Her tone sounded petty. The rest of her friends nodded along to her words, and both Leo and Takumi tried to look away in dismay. 

Another woman with knee-length pale blue hair stood up, looking annoyed towards the curly-haired woman’s statement.

“Most people who currently stay in this hotel are either people who actually want a place to stay, or people who have a  _ death wish _ … I dislike being around your company…  If you don’t know anything, then really, it’s best to try and keep yourselves silent.” She then proceeded to call a waiter to pay her bill and hastily left, leaving her food halfway eaten and cold.

The group reacted negatively, feeling completely disgusted. When the situation resided a few minutes after, Leo could only keep eating his stew emotionless with more thoughts popping left and right. 

What’s gonna happen within 4 days of their stay?

* * *

 

Takumi stood against the metallic fence at the balcony, busy playing video games in his phone while Leo sat in front of his laptop on the bed. Where will his ideas start pouring out? He tried to sturdy his thoughts for the final chapters on his manuscript, but at the same time the stories of the bellboy couldn’t escape from his brains’ grasp. The dissatisfied Leo kept typing some words and brashly pressed backspace. He was very disgruntled that the ideas weren’t there again.

Irritated, he switched his laptop off and placed it aside. Instead, he reached out for his phone inside from his pocket and looked for the blog post he read before.

 

_ ‘It is said that he’s frequently seen after midnight. Roaming robotically with no destination in mind on the third floor.’ _

 

Leo realised that the room they were staying in was at the  _ third floor.  _ The chances would be incredibly high for the both of them to stumble upon the spirit. More and more questions rose upon his box of thoughts. How does he look like? Is his face actually scary? 

A tap on the shoulder startled him. Takumi chuckled seeing his reaction. He was amused to know that Leo was gradually getting easier for him to shock ever since they were staying in this hotel.

“I’m gonna head out to the nearest convenience store. Buying some magazines. Wanna follow?” asked Takumi. Leo only shook his head.

“Go on ahead.” The sullen man felt that it was unnecessary for him to follow his friend around. He wasn’t a little boy that needed supervision. Scared? No. It was the best decision for him to hang out around the room and rest his clouded mind.

Takumi then walked outside after putting on his shoes, leaving Leo by himself. He went along and viewed his phone screen; wanting to continue reading the blog posts. There was still a lot of things that he needed to know, especially the presence of the entity that looked like a bellboy.

 

_ ‘Do NOT open the door when it’s late in midnight because the one who knocks is not human.’ _

 

Leo was a little worried with those words. Will he and Takumi hear those exact knocks during midnight? Mixed feelings began to appear within him.

 

_ ‘More often than not will the smell of strong iron and metal will be present. The foul smell is said to be the smell of blood that belonged to the victim of the murder. If you manage to smell this scent, remain determined in your wills. If you’re religious, pray to whatever God you believe in to gain protection.” _

 

The contents within the blog steadily became creepier. The anxious author decided to close the blog post and wanted to resume writing his manuscript that was still incomplete. Tension was slowly growing around his surroundings. Leo only tried his best to stay determined to complete his piece that was only left for a few chapters.

The slim laptop lit up and Leo was sitting cross-legged on top of the bed, trying to gain as much concentration as he could. The last chapter that he made a week ago was currently being proof-read. Without hesitation, he made a few changes and tweaks towards any small mistakes that he caught. 

After that, Leo was now ready to make a new chapter. Nevertheless, a sudden sound of the door slowly ajar caught his attention. Leo wondered if it was Takumi, but his suspicions were wrong. He thought his friend already closed the door on his way out.

Feeling sudden discomfort about the door ajar, Leo walked towards the door to close it. He then started to wonder if the wind simply opened it or if it was just his friend who only forgot to close the door properly.

 


End file.
